The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1887-03-11
ADVENTURE IN RUSSIA.

ADVENTURE In RUSSIA.
had been spending a week with
some friends in quaint old village a
few miles outside of Moscow. The
Of my departure my host,
looking exceedingly grave, besought
me to take a droshky from the village,
and not ride the journey back. ]
and said the ride was nothing.
20, it is not the ride I mind" said
he, "but your being alone. There has
been a mutiny lately among the soldiers
at M; numbers have deserted, and
it is said that twenty are in the forest
at Kalga, living by robbery. Be that
as it may, two travellers have been
waylaid on the road there within the
last week" l remembered that in
coming to my friends house. the road
had passed through wood for about a
mile. This must have been Kalga.
1 started on my bicycle at a pretty
fair pace, but, the road being bad, I
had to slacken little. 1t was still day
light as 1 entered the forest, but the
great pine trunks, with their enormous
radiating out from the top,
soon shut out much of the light. After
goihg, as 1 judged, about two miles, !
could scarcely see anything beyond
the edges of the road on either hand.
Eoi1ing my head stopped, looking to
avoid stones on my path, suddenly
became conscious of flash. A ball
past, and, looking up, saw a
dark figure bound out on the road a
few yards higinr up.
My resolution vas soon taken;
turned the machine, and dashed back
in the direction Of the village; but an
other flash from that quarter and the
hot sting of bullet as it grazed my
shoulder told me / was surrounded,
but even in that moment, the flash
showed me an opening in the forest to
my right, where a small by-road joined
it. l turned the bicycle sharp, and,
though almost thrown off by the jerk,
/ was speeding along at a rapid pace,
and was safe from pursuit, Byan un-
oyersig ht my 1WoIIdsh8
murIlerers had left me one avenue of
escape, which the shot that was meant
to kill me had revealed. l concluded
that this track must lead up to some
and rode on steadily.
After riding a long time 1 heard q
slight sound as of ''yak," yak" ]
and dismounted in order to
listen. After a while heard it again
plainly. concluded it must be q dog
barking in some farm-yard near.
again l rode on at a re-
rate. The only thing that per-
picked me was that the sound came
from behind. But this l attributed to
some curious echo. Soon the sound
grew louder, and it was plain that
whatever it was it came from more
throats than one. 1t was like bark,
yet it was not the bark of a dog. i,
In a moment the hideOus truth burst
in upon me. The sound was from be-
hind; they were following me, they
were drawing up on me. They were
not dogs. They were wolves. For a
moment l felt as if there were no
power in my limbs. Only by a strong
effort | managed to work the bicycle
at all. Even in those few seconds of
terror the brutes had measurably APP
preached. Regaining courage, 1 raced
for my life. l certainly forged ahead
a little, but / could not keep up the
speed.
Closer and closer undoubtedly they
were coming. And now. as the brutes
were gaining on me, they ceased to
yelp. But this was even less endur-
able. To think of death (and death
so hOrrible) coming thus, silent and
inevitable, in the darkness of the night,
in the midst of Il Russian pine forest.
/ could hear the scurrying, pattering
sound they made as they sped over the
ground. Sometimes solitary yelp
would break the stiffness, and once or
twice, as if preconcerted, the whole
pack burst in a fearful chorus. The
moon was now up and | could see as /
looked back the pack hundred yards
behind; all but one lean, famished
brute, who. with red tongue lOlling out,
was, saw to my horror, within ten
yards of me.
just then the noise of q torrent burst
on my ears, wide open space in the
center Of the forest lag before me.
Running through the center of ii
shone in the moonlight the foaming
waters of a mountain stream. 1t lay
down in a low but steep ravine, its
rocky bank rising 10 the height Of ten
feet or thereabouts. On the opposite
bank / could see the white road still
Further on light beamed
out. l shouted loud, but it only
seemed to set the wolves behind me
yelping more fierccly that ever.
But. looking ahead, perceived that
the bridge Gf ever Il bridge had been
there) no longer existed. 1t had prob
ably been swept away by some flood
in the river, Despairingly 1 looked at
the light that lay only Il few hundred
yards away from me-that light that
promised shelter and human compan-
ionship to me could only reach it. !
shouted and shouted again and again.
/ was now within ten yards of the
river. was hesitating whether to
end my life at once by riding over the
precipice and into the torrent or to
dismount and die standing at bay.
Just as / was about 10 adopt the latter
course perceived that the bridge was
not entirely gone; one solitary pine
trunk spanned the torrent from cliff to
cliff.
In q moment / had decided on my
course. / grasped the handles tightly
and put on the fastest speed / could, for
] knew that the faster the pace the
more accurately could steer. / mur-
INJURED prayer. was on the beam.
Fortunately it was somewhat planned on
the top, Steadily i kept my eyes on
that narrow track-every little uneven
ness, every knot in the timber had to
steer clear of. The slightest jolt would
have cast me into the swirling waters